Inflatable restraint devices commonly called airbags are standard equipment on most new vehicles. In early implementations of airbag systems, vehicles were equipped with one or more airbags that would deploy from forward-facing regions such as the steering wheel and the passenger side of the instrument panel. In more recent implementations, additional airbags have been employed in different areas of the vehicle. For example, side-curtain airbags have been utilized to provide enhanced energy dissipation capacity along the sides of vehicles. Side-curtain airbags have been employed in areas adjacent to the roof rail and headliner or the side doors. These airbag devices are typically concealed from occupant view prior to deployment by interior trim panels associated with the roof rail and/or headliner.
When an airbag is deployed, it is inflated with a gas, which pressurizes the airbag and induces surface tension in the material from which the airbag is fabricated. To ensure that the airbag deploys correctly, guide features are sometimes provided to allow the tensioned material to move in a desired manner with respect to adjacent vehicle structures, such as trim panels, structural pillars, windows, and seats.